FEDERAL
CHARITABLE CHOICE PROGRAMS

Items in the news: 1988 to 2001-FEB

Sponsored link.

Items in the news:

1988: U.S. Supreme Court decision - Bowen v. Kendrick:
The court decided that a federal law, the Adolescent Family Life
Act is constitutional. That law funded charitable and religious
organizations that run counseling programs for pregnant teenagers and
their parents. The court decided that the establishment clause of the
First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution does not prevent religious
organization from engaging in government-funded programs which are
aimed at promoting
social welfare goals. However government funding of a program by a
"pervasively sectarian" organization in a way
that advanced a religious mission would be unconstitutional. 1Presumably, this would imply that an alcoholic treatment
program that urge that the clients be "saved"
would be unconstitutional. Similarly, a reparative
therapy program which attempts to change homosexuals
into heterosexuals and which that stressed prayer and Bible
quotations condemning homosexuality would be unconstitutional.
Similar programs by religious groups using a secular counseling would be acceptable.

1996: House: Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act of 1996: This was Bill H.R. 3734. Section 104
allows states to enter into contracts with charitable, religious or
private organizations to deliver services under the Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families Act (TANF), Supplementary Security Income
(SSI), food stamps and Medicaid programs. 2

1996: Texas task force: Governor Bush (R-TX)
created a Faith-Based Task Force in 1996-MAY. Its goal was to
identify obstacles to government funding of religious groups, and to
recommend how to implement such funding without excessive regulations.
Many of the Task Force's recommendations were signed into Texas law by
mid 1997.

1998: Senate: Charitable Choice Expansion Act: Senator John
Ashcroft, (R-MO) introduced a version of this act in
1998, but never made it to the floor of the Senate. It would have
greatly expanded the range of programs for which churches could obtain with government
funding.

1998: House: American Community Renewal Act:
Representatives J.C. Watts, (R-OK), and James Talent, (R-MO)
introduced the American Community Renewal Act in 1998-MAY. It
would amend the Internal Revenue Code to include tax breaks,
regulatory schemes and federal grants for religious organizations to
"stimulate the creation of new jobs, particularly for
disadvantaged workers and long-term unemployed individuals, and to
promote revitalization of economically distressed areas..." Robert Woodson,
president of the National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise, said:
"Faith-based
institutions have demonstrated that they can transform the attitudes,
values and behaviors of some of the most alienated and
self-destructive people in our society, where conventional programs
have failed. Therefore, even if one does not embrace religiosity, one
can respect, appreciate and embrace the secular consequences of what
they do. Supporting faith-based intervention can be justified on
strategic, secular, practical political grounds because it works, and
at much lower costs. Government should not be hostile to faith-based
programs." 1

1999: Senate: Charitable Choice Expansion Act: Senator
John Ashcroft, (R-MO) re-introduced the Charitable Choice
Expansion Act of 1999 (S1113) on 1999 MAY-25. It said in part: "Neither
the Federal Government nor a State or local government shall require a
religious organization to alter its form of internal governance; or to
remove religious art, icons, scripture, or other symbols; in order to
be eligible to provide assistance under a program."

Senator Ashcroft said: "We have known for
years that government solutions have failed miserably in moving
people from dependency and despair to responsibility and
independence. For years America's churches and charities have been
leading the way in helping the poor achieve dignity and
self-sufficiency. This is why I have been advocating that
government should find ways to help these organizations unleash
the cultural remedy our society so desperately needs."

Carole Shields, president of People for the
American Way wrote: "What you are proposing is a
constitutional lose-lose situation... This proposal will go wrong
either way - either it will undermine the Constitution by
supporting the practice of religion or it will undermine the
churches' freedom by imposing limitations on religious expression."

Elliot Mincberg, executive vice president and
legal direct or of PFAW stated: "Inevitably you run into a
dilemma — you either have laws with absolutely no
accountability, or regulations of churches or congressional
regulation and control that will interfere with religious missions
and programs. Charitable choice distracts from better ways of
providing support to religious groups' involvement in social
service programs, such as tax proposals that provide incentives
for all nonprofit groups to run such programs."

Joseph Conn, communications director for Americans United for
Separation of Church and State stated: "We are
concerned that the needy persons will find themselves in an
extremely religious environment in order to receive social
services. I think in the long run religious institutions would
regret taking the public funds because of the government intrusion
that ultimately follows the money." Referring to the
freedom of churches to receive public money, and then discriminate
against parts of the public in their hiring policies, he stated:
"We believe public funds should never be used to support
discrimination...This bill raises all kinds of delicate church-
and-state issues." 2

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Activity - year 2000

2000: Presidential campaigns: Both the Democratic and
Republican candidates for president in 2001 to 2004, George W. Bush and Al
Gore, supported charitable-choice initiatives during their election
campaigns. For Gore, this was a major departure from the historical
Democratic Party position. George W Bush proposed an Office of
Faith-Based Action to promote charitable choice. Gore's support is
conditional on the clients are not forced into religious readings or
prayers, and on there being an alternative secular program
available in the
community.

2000: House bill: Homeownership and Economic Development Act:
As mentioned above, Representative Mark Souder (R-IN) introduced a
charitable choice amendment to House bill The
Homeownership and Economic Development Act of 2000. He said that
the Department of Housing and Urban Development [HUD] already
has allowed religious groups to use federal funds to provide social
services. His amendment would simply codify the practice. It would
require the religious institution to provide services for all.
Charitable Choice "would allow a Catholic priest to have his
collar on if it is at a Catholic facility [and] would not require them
to remove icons." The amendment was passed on 2000-APR-7. 3

At a panel which discussed church-state issues,
Jimmy Allen, a Baptist preacher and former president of the Southern
Baptist Convention expressed a concern that churches would
give up their independence by accepting government funds. He said
that religious groups should "create a climate of concern"
about social problems that would force politicians to act.

The Rev. James Thomas, of the Jefferson Street
Missionary Baptist Church in Nashville TN said that charitable
choice is not the answer to racism, poverty and other social
problems: "It would not work. I don't trust the government
in our church. The black church must be free to speak. The
government did nothing for the black church during the civil
rights movement and today they want to give us money and shut our
mouths."

Edward Dobson pastor of Calvary Church in
Grand Rapids, MI, said charitable choice "sounds good
[but] when on the dance floor, the government looks like an
octopus." 4

2000-NOV: USA: Lawsuits against charitable choice
programs: By early November, there were at least three active
lawsuits in progress:

Kentucky: Kentucky Baptist Homes for Children
fired counselor Alicia Pedreira in 1998 because of her sexual
orientation.

Texas: A state welfare-to-work program is
alleged to include Bible-based lectures.

Wisconsin: The lawsuit involves Faith
Works, a Milwaukee program that helps fathers with drug treatment
and job training.

Activity - year 2001:

2001-JAN-29: Washington DC: President Bush unveiled charitable
choice program: According to Evangelical Press News Service:
President Bush issued a proposal to make up to 24 billion dollars
in federal funding over the next ten years. He also:

Created a White House Office of Faith-Based and
Community Initiatives.

Appointed John J. Dilulio Jr., a political science
professor from the University of Pennsylvania to administer
the office.

Instructed five Cabinet-level agencies to
interface with religious organizations and to eliminate barriers
"that make private groups hesitant to work with
government."

The plan is to enlarge the scope of charitable choice. It is
currently limited to a few programs in the Department of Health and
Human Services. President Bush's plan "would expand the
provision to allow religious charities to compete for more than 100
programs in the departments of labor (job training, for example),
justice (community policing), education (after-school programs) and
housing and urban development." 5

President Bush said: "Compassion is the work of a nation,
not just a government. Government will never be replaced by charities
and community groups. Yet when we see social needs in America, my
administration will look first to faith-based programs. We will not
discriminate against them."

Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for
Separation of Church and State commented: "George Bush
does not understand the nature of either the church or the
Constitution." He further said that Bush's proposal violates
the "essential spirit" of the First
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. He said that the plan is a
"vast payback to the religious right for help in [his]
election."

Jay Sekulow, spokesperson for the American Center for Law and
Justice, said that President Bush's plan doesn't violate the
constitutional separation of church and state. "This is a
creative and constitutionally sound approach that should be embraced,
not shunned. It is clear the president's plan recognizes the power of
faith in our lives -- it does not endorse a particular faith or
religion. Providing federal funding to faith-based groups can be done
in a way that will not trigger a constitutional problem."

The American Jewish Congress expressed concern that while "funding
religious agencies to provide public services as long as the actual
programs themselves remain secular in nature may be appropriate and
useful, it is quite another thing when religious teaching itself
becomes the heart of the program and is the means whereby those
services are provided." 6

2001-FEB-20: Washington DC: White House Office of Faith-Based and Community
Initiatives opens: According to the New York Times: 7
The Office opens on FEB-20. There have been some interesting
developments concerning the range of faith groups that will be
acceptable for funding:

When President Bush signed the executive order which established
the Office he was flanked by an multi-faith group of religious
leaders. But all were from Abrahamic faiths: about 20 Christians,
two Jews, and one Muslim. There were no small minority faiths
represented: Buddhism, Hinduism, Native American spirituality,
Taoism, Wicca and other Neopagan religions, etc.

The president says religious programs will be judged not on
their beliefs but on the results of their work. At a prayer
breakfast on FEB-1, he said "We do not impose any religion.
We welcome all religion."

Philip Jenkins, the author of "Mystics and Messiah,"
commented: "Running a faith-based program raises the
question, what faiths are out of bounds? Either you fund all faith
groups, even groups you radically don't like, or you fund none. I
have nothing against funding everybody, but I think people need to
be prepared for the issues that might arise. How do you
distinguish between a Methodist and a Moonie? The answer is, you
can't."

According to the New York Times article, the Anti-Defamation
League (a major Jewish anti-hate organization) has been
lobbying to assure that the Nation of Islam will be
excluded from any charitable-choice program.

2001-FEB-20: Virginia: Pat Robinson attacks charitable choice:
According to the Washington Post:
On his 700 Club television program, Pat Robertson, head of the Christian
Coalition, criticized the faith-based initiative of President
Bush. He expressed concern that the Hare Krishnas,
Church of Scientology, and Unification
Church "could all become financial beneficiaries of the
proposal to expand eligibility for government grants to religious
charities...This thing could be a real Pandora's box. And what seems
to be such a great initiative can rise up to bite the organizations as
well as the federal government." [Pat seems to have left out
New Agers, Satanists, Wiccans, and many other religious minorities]. In response to Pat Robertson's
comment, Rev. Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United,
said: "This means Bush's plan is in enormous political
trouble. When staunch Bush allies like Robertson start jumping ship,
the plan clearly appears to be sinking." 8

"As a result of discussion among activists and religious leaders in
the Wiccan, Pagan and earth religious communities, an open statement
to government officials regarding President Bush's Office of Faith
Based Action and Community Initiatives has been sent. The statement
was written in collaboration with earth religious leaders about the
concerns faced by members of Wiccan, Pagan and earth religious faith
groups and the President's initiatives. The statement outlines the
fears concerning discrimination, harassment and defamation for groups
who may wish to apply for the program and program participants."

"The office calls for more government funds to be opened up to
religious charities and churches. This move concerns not only
Wiccan, Pagan and earth religious faith groups, but many other
religious groups as well. Some Jewish and Baptist
organizations are opposed to it, suggesting that the government
funds may taint their religious programs and create additional
bureaucracy."

"The Pagan community, which includes Wiccans, Druids and a wide
variety of earth religious faith groups feels that it has a lot more
to fear. The Wiccan community has often been brought up by government
officials and the media as a challenge to the program. Many deem
Wicca as a substandard religion without giving clarifying reasons for
why it would not qualify in the program. Like many other faith
groups, earth religious traditions have food pantries, prison
ministries, and substance abuse programs in their communities. They
are also committed to service in the area of social action in current
secular and faith based organizations."

"Stephen Goldsmith, the Domestic Policy Advisor to the President
spoke ill of Wicca during an interview on Mc Laughlin's One on
One. He said that he did not 'think that Wiccans would meet the standard
of
being humane providers of domestic violence shelters'."

"In dialogue between CNN's Bill Press and Tucker Carlson on the
show Spin Room, Wicca was heavily debated. Topics
included Wiccan
hospitals, chicken sacrificing and how the government would not give
funds to Wiccans. Indiana Representative Souder stated on the House
floor in April of 2000 stated that "it is unlikely under
President
Bush that the witches would get funding."

"With such comments abounding, it is no wonder that many in the earth
religious faith traditions fear unequal treatment."

"The first edition of the letter will be in governmental boxes by the
third week of February." 9

The letter can be seen at AREN's web site at http://aren.org.
They are collecting signatures. And, by the way, CNN news reporters are
misinformed. Wiccans and other Pagans do
not sacrifice chickens. They may have confused Pagans with Santerians. Santeria is a
syncretistic religion which is a blend of Roman Catholicism and West African
Native religion.

2001-FEB-24: USA: American Atheists to petition President Bush:American
Atheists plan to submit the following petition at the White
House:

"Millions of American citizens who are Atheists, rationalists,
agnostics or otherwise have concerns for the importance of the First
Amendment separation of church and state, oppose your Executive Orders
creating a special White House Office of Faith-based and Community
Initiatives which seeks to fund and assist the faith-based
programs administered by religious groups."

"The initiative threatens that First Amendment
separation by entangling government and religion. It turns the "armies
of compassion" into publicly funded "armies of
conversion," and imposes a Religion Tax on the American
people."

"A cornerstone of the American Revolution was
disestablishment, which ended tax funding of religious denominations.
This initiative threatens that important principle."

"As President of all the people, you must
acknowledge the rights of all Americans who seek their freedom from
religion. No person should be compelled to worship, to believe in a
specific religious creed, or financially support through any program
or scheme, any church, mosque, temple or faith-based outreach."
10